the dirigible plum

My Corner of the World: Slice of Life and NaPoWriMo #sol16

Poem

My Corner of the World

The bottom of the ocean is a field

Green, then yellow. Gold, then brown.

Once this ocean was brown with bison

Prairie grass bends with the wind

So dry it’s hard to imagine it was once ocean

So much space a person can feel small

Or exactly person-sized

Strangely grounded, swimming in an ocean of grass

bison and plains.jpg

Photo CC-By Jerry and Pat Donaho at Flickr.com

Today’s Slice was inspired by Leigh Anne’s My Corner of the World, which was inspired by Julieanne’s Found Poetry at Catalina. “The bottom of the ocean” is directly borrowed from Julieanne’s poem, and I returned several times to her piece for inspiration as I wrote my poem about western South Dakota.

slice of life

 

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Elisabeth Ellington

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Comments

14 responses to “My Corner of the World: Slice of Life and NaPoWriMo #sol16”

  1. dwitkus Avatar
    dwitkus

    So glad you shared your poem. I am ready to plan a trip and see it for myself.

    Reply
    1. Elisabeth Ellington Avatar
      Elisabeth Ellington

      It’s an amazing place to visit–so many interesting things to see and do!

      Reply
  2. Melanie Meehan (@MelanieMeehan1) Avatar
    Melanie Meehan (@MelanieMeehan1)

    Love the poem, and I also love how you shared your process. The repetition works really well!

    Reply
    1. Elisabeth Ellington Avatar
      Elisabeth Ellington

      Thanks, Melanie. I’m really enjoying the process notes at some of the NaPoWriMo sites, so I thought I’d share a bit too.

      Reply
  3. sallydonnelly11 Avatar
    sallydonnelly11

    “swimming in an ocean of grass” …what a perfect image.
    So glad you added an image to match your precise words!
    I live in Virginia, a totally different terrane. So fun to get a glimpse of your part of the world today with your slice! Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  4. Linda Baie Avatar
    Linda Baie

    I love the contraction of “Strangely grounded, swimming in an ocean of grass”, Elisabeth. It is a beautiful place, and I also love the allusion to the bison.

    Reply
  5. Leigh Anne Avatar
    Leigh Anne

    Another beautiful corner of the world! I really think I need to go back and make mine into a real poem! It was just a series of rambling thoughts. This line “So much space a person can feel small,” reminds me of the song Wide Open Spaces by the Dixie Chicks.

    Reply
  6. jarhartz Avatar
    jarhartz

    My favorite line: “Strangely grounded, swimming in an ocean of grass”
    So inspiring to have fueled your thoughts and words. Something worth continuing….

    Reply
  7. Dalila Eckstein Avatar
    Dalila Eckstein

    “Or exactly person-sized” This line, in the context you’ve used it, accentuates the small. Love it, and the poem! My students and I are also participating in the #NaPoWriMo challenge. 🙂

    Reply
  8. carriegelson Avatar
    carriegelson

    Just so very gorgeous. I love the part about “exactly person sized”

    Reply
  9. Ricki Ginsberg Avatar
    Ricki Ginsberg

    Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Thanks for sharing, Elisabeth.

    Reply
  10. Poetry Friday: Floaties – To Read To Write To Be

    […] line, swimming in an ocean of unknowns,) from Elisabeth Ellington’s poem spoke to me.  Leigh Anne’s poem about her little corner of the world inspired Elisabeth to […]

    Reply
  11. It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #imwayr 4/11/16 | the dirigible plum

    […] poem slice of life about South […]

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  12. Cheriee Weichel Avatar
    Cheriee Weichel

    I loved reading this. You have reminded me how beautiful each corner of the world is and that each moment of time is layered in history. Sigh…

    Reply

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